By Cai Haoxiang
THE sleaze in Joo Chiat has shrivelled.
The 'hundreds' of women who used to walk the street at night have fallen to about 40 to 50, according to the area's MP Chan Soo Sen.
'I make it a point to look at (the situation) every week and have a rough count,' he told reporters.
The vice problem is now confined to a 50m stretch along Joo Chiat Road, he added, and more family-oriented and lifestyle businesses such as food, fashion, advertising and souvenirs have popped up in the neighbourhood in the last couple of years.
The MP was briefing reporters yesterday on the improvements made to the heritage area, ahead of the May9 ministerial walkabout by Law Minister K. Shanmugam.
In 2005, he said, 'hundreds' of women solicited customers along the 1.3km stretch of Joo Chiat Road. Now, the road is quieter and he sees 40 to 50 women on the street when he drives or walks around the area at night.
It just shifted over to Kovan, thats all.